Rain separator for automobile ventilating devices



March 27, 1945. H S

RAIN SEPARATOR FOR AUTOMOBILE VENTILATING DEVICES 4 Shets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 52727221276? //a/7.s

A FTORNEY March 27, 1945. E. E.- HANS 2,372,377

RAIN SEPARATOR FOR AUTOMOBILE VENTILATING DEVICES Original Filed March 12, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 F/G. Z

INVENTOR ATTORNEY March 27, 1945. E. E. l- IANS 3 7 RAIN SEPARATOR FOR AUTOMOBILE VQENTILATING DEVICES Original Filed March 12, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I 66 a? 5/ a R w 5 M 56 n I w Z? w l 1 56 INVENTOR 4 [amzmdT/hn;

ATTORNEY March 27, 1945. E. E. HANS 2,372,377

RAIN S EPARATOR FOR AUTOMOBILE VENTILATING DEVICES Original Filed Match 12, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 YINVENTOR Edmyni 5/76/75 RNEY Obviously by opening the door 6| at least some 7 of the outside air may be admitted into the bottom fan housing 46 for circulation through the heater core 45 and either for circulation; as indicated by the arrows l8 and I9 or some of this after, air passing through the heater core 45 may be allowed to flow up the extension53 and the duct |6 by moving the valves 54 and 56 to their positions indicated at 55 and 51. Laterally disposed doors 43 are also provided in the bottom of the chamber 20 which, when open, permit passage of outside air directly downward into the body of the vehicle.

From the foregoing it will be readily seen that should rain enter the chamber 20 with the air and not be removed therefrom this rain would be discharged with air passing out of the duct [6, or through the doors 43 if open, to the annoyance of occupants of the vehicle.

My rain extractor in its preferred form consists of the following arrangement: Formed within the chamber 26 and extending across its entire width from the bottom of the front wall thereof is a downwardly projecting sump 4 I, through the bottom of which'suitable drain outlets 42 are provided. A baffle plate 36 extending across the entire chamber 20 projects forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall of the latter and te'rminates at its lower extremity in a transverse trough 3| which is positioned forwardly of the center of the chamber and intermediately of the height of the latter. Mounted above the plate 30 and parallel therewith is a louvered plate 32 having louvers 33 therein which extend the full width of the chamber. -The lower, forward extremity of the louvered plate 32 is downwardly and rear-' wardly turned and rests upon the bottom of the trough 3|, and, as shown in Figure 4, openings 35 are formed through the downturned edge of the plate 32 to permit water to flow from the plate 32 into the trough 3| and into conduits 34 extending through the bottom of the latter forwardly and downwardly toward the sump 4|.

' As will be seen in Figure 4, a smooth forwardly and downwardly curved deflecting plate 36 extends from its upwardly turned margin 31 which projects through the opening in the cowl' 2| above which the scoop 22 is provided. This defleeting plate which is substantially semi-circular in section is downwardly and rearwardly or baflie plate 36 to catch and deflect water enteringthrough the scoop 22 onto the said plate 30, whence it runs down to the trough 3| and through the conduits 34 to drop into the sump 4|. 65 denotes vertical grooves formed in opposite sides of the chamber 20 to direct water collected n the chamber sides into the sump 4|.

The lower extremity of a plate 66 is secured to the front wall of the chamber within the latter and intermediately of the-height of the chamber. This plate 66 is turned so that it extends upwardly parallel with and spaced from the said front chamber wall to form a vertical passage becurved toward its lower extremity and through a this lower portion the conduits 34 extend. Ob-' viously air entering the scoop 22 which passes over the flexed margin 31 of the deflecting plate 36 is forwardly and downwardly directed by the latter and passes in front of the trough 3L, The pointof greatest restriction is between the bottom ofthe plate 32 and the plate 36 so that there the throat of a venturi is formed through which the air flows. Tests have shown that more air passes through the separator if this throat is relatively narrow than if it is widened. This feature is of importance because when the throat is thus properly proportioned it insures an adequate air flow therethrough at all times. A curved shield 66 extends from the bottom rear edge of the scoop 22 rearwardly and downwardly toth pan tween them. A transverse slot 38 is formed in the curved wall 36 substantially in horizontal alignment with the trough 3| and through this slot a lip39 formed upon the upper margin'of the plate 60 extends. The lower extremity of the plate 60 adjacent its junction with the front chamber wall has apertures 40 formed therethrough to permit water passing down between the plate 66 and the front wall of the chamber 26 to drop into the sump 4|.

From the foregoing it will be seen that some rain strikes the front of the upwardly turned margin 31 of the deflector plate 36 and runs down betweenthe plate 66 and the front of the chamber 20 to the openings 40 and drops through the latter into the sump 4|. The rest of the rain passes above the upwardly turned margin 31 and much of it comes into contact with the shield 66 and flows downwardly and rearwardly thereon to the bafile plate 36 and thus to the trough 3| and down the conduits 34 to the sump. The purpose of the louvered plate 32 is two fold. Firstly it prevents the air which is travelling at high velocity blowing water off the bailie plate 30 and out of the trough 3| back into'the air stream; and'it also catches some rain. This rain either passes through the louvers 33 into the trough 3| or else flows over the plate 32 to the apertures 35 and thus to the conduits 34. Rain which is still in the air stream is brought into contact with the downwardly and forwardly curved portion of the deflector plate 36 and flows down the latter to the lip 39 whence it passes down the front of the wall 60 and through the openings 46 into the sump 4|. Meanwhile some water also is received in and flows down the vertical grooves 65.

While in the foregoing the preferred embodiment of the invention has been described and shown, it is understood that alterations and modifications may be made thereto provided the said alterations andmodifications fall within the scope'of the appended claims:

What I claim is:

1. Ina rain separator for automobile ventilat ing devices, a casing having a chamber therein adapted to be mounted in an automobile body benea'th an apertured cowl, said casing having an inlet opening into said chamber registering with the cowl aperture for the admission of fresh air andan outlet from said chamber opening into said automobile |bodyfor discharge of the air, into the latter, an imperforate baffle plate in said chamber extending forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall of the casing and terminating in spaced relation to the front wall thereof, said bafiie'plate being interposed between said inlet and outlet, a louvered plate parallel with and over said baffle plate through which water from the air flowing through said chamber drops onto said baffie plate, and outlet means through which the water from the baffle plate .fiows.

2. In a rain separator for automobile ventilatber, a trough extending across the forward margin of the baffle plate, a transversely louvered plate over the baffle plate and trough through which water from the air drops, and outlet means for the water from the trough.

3. A rain separator for automobile ventilating devices including a hollow casing adapted to be mounted in an automobile body beneath an apertured cowl, said casing having'an inlet therein registering with the cowl aperture for admission of fresh air thereinto and an outlet for the discharge of the air into the automobile body, an imperforate baiile plate interposed-between the inlet and the outlet extending forwardly and downwardly within the casing from its rear wall, a trough extending across the front margin of the baflie plate to receive water therefrom, said trough being rearwardly spaced from the front wall of the casing, a louvered plate over the baffle plate through which water from the air drops onto the baflle plate, and outlet means extending from the trough through which the water flows.

4. In a rain separator for automobile ventilating devices, a casing having a chamber therein adapted to be mounted in an automobile body beneath an apertured cowl, said casing having an inlet opening into the top of the chamber registering with the cowl aperture for admission of fresh air into said chamber and an outlet from the bottom of said chamber opening into the automobile body for the discharge of said air, a bailie plate in saidchamber extending between the inlet and the outlet projecting forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall Of the casing and spaced from the front wall of the latter across its front extremity, a shield projecting downwardly and rearwardly from the back of the inlet to the back of the milk plate down which water from the air flows, a louvered plate extending over the bafiie plate through which water from the air drops onto the latter, and outlet means through which water from the bafiie plate flows. I

5. In a rain separator for automobile ventilating devices, a casing having a chamber therein adapted to be mounted in an automobile body beneath an apertured cowl, said casing having an inlet opening into said chamber registering with the cowl aperture and an outlet from said chamber opening into said body, a curved deflector plate within the chamber, an impervious baflle plate in said chamber interposed between the inlet and the outlet, said baflie plate projecting forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall of the casing and having its front margin spaced from the deflector plate whereby a throat of decreased width is formed between them, a louvered plate extending over the baflle plate through which water passes which is extracted from air flowing between the inlet and the outlet onto said bafiie plate, and downwardly disposed conduits through which water from the baffle plate passes.

6. In a rain separator for automobile ventilating devices, a casing having a chamber thereln adapted to be mounted in an automobile body beneath an apertured cowl, an inlet in the top of the casing adapted to register with the cowl aperture for the admission of fresh air into said chamber and an outlet in the bottom of said casing through which the air passes from the chamber into the automobile body, a substantially semi-circular deflector plate in said casing having its portion substantially centrally of its height forwardly bowed toward the front wall of the casing, an impervious ibaille-plate in said casing projecting forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall thereof and having its front margin spaced from the deflector plate intermediately of the height of the latter whereby said bafile plate is interposed between said inlet and outlet, a louvered plate extending over the baiiie plate, a sump beneath the bottom of the curved deflector plate, and conduits through which water from the bafiie plate flows to the sump.

7. In arain separator for automobile ventilating devices, a casing having a chamber therein adapted to be mounted in an automobile body beneath an apertured cowl, an inlet in the top of the casing adapted to register with the cowl aperture for admission of fresh air into said chamber and an outlet in the bottom of the easing for discharge of the air into the automobile body, a substantially semi-circular deflector plate in the casing having its portion substantially centrally of its height forwardly bowed toward the front wall of the casing and adjacent thereto, an impervious bafile plate in the chamber interposed between the inlet and the outlet and extending forwardly and downwardly from the rear wall of the casing and having its front margin spaced from the rear of the deflector plate intermediately Of the height of the latter whereby a throat is formed between them through which air flowing P from the inlet to the outlet passes and water extracted from the air strikes the rear face of the deflector plate, the latter being apertured intermediately of its height, rearward projecting lips formed on the undersides of said apertures to receive water flowing down the plate and divert it through said apertures onto the front of the plate, and a sump beneath the front of the deflector plate into which said water passes;

' EDMUND E. HANS. 

